First Coast Connect

A murder conviction in one of the most high-profile crimes of the past decade was overturned by the South Carolina Supreme Court last week based on the meddling of a small-county court clerk. The decision was both evidence of a robust system designed to protect the rights of the accused and a glaring example of how our nation's jury system is vulnerable to the interference of even bit players. We ask two local trial attorneys whether the verdict reversal in the notorious Alex Murdaugh murder case suggests the need for changes in the criminal justice system.

Guests:

• Teri Sopp, assistant public defender, criminal defense attorney
• Lisa Varon, reference law librarian, adjunct professor of law, Jacksonville University College of Law

From the moment trauma strikes, be it a gunshot, a car crash or a stroke, a system of first responders clicks into motion, which, if successful, shuttles a patient from the precipice of death to physical stability and, eventually, recovery. The path from wreckage to rehab can involve dozens of EMTs, ER nurses and trauma surgeons, all of whom experience the stress and reward of working the space between life and death. We talk to two veteran trauma first responders about how they manage their daily exposure to things most would hope to never see, and how they pass that experience to others entering the field.

Guests:

• Dr. Shilpa Amin, chair of emergency medicine at HCA Florida Memorial Hospital
• Dr. Bradley Elias, medical director of the Jacksonville Fire and Rescue Department 

A new baseball league aims to get talented players off the bench and back in the game. The Jacksonville Competitive Baseball League was established to hone player skills and spotlight athletes who may have been overlooked due to injury, finances or lack of exposure. The 2026 season is underway and runs through July 12.

Guests:

• Jonathan Vazquez, founder, Jacksonville Competitive Baseball League
• John Peters, manager, The Muffin Freaks

Each Friday, our panel of media experts dives into the biggest stories of the week. Among our topics this week:

• Civil rights attorney Ben Crump picks up two new clients over concerns about law enforcement response in Duval and Clay counties.
• The city gives Winn-Dixie $12 million to keep it in Jacksonville, even as residents of Brentwood and Green Cove Springs fight to keep the grocer in their communities.
• Florida’s attorney general targets the city, the NFL and AI chatbots as his first election looms.
• Former Jacksonville Mayor Lenny Curry weighed in saying the state's lawsuit against the city over its gun registry does have merit.

Guests:

• Obi Umunna, attorney and political consultant
• Mike Mendenhall, associate editor and City Hall reporter at Jacksonville Today
• Sylvia Perry, editor of the Jacksonville Free Press
• Frank Powers, former assignment manager at WJXT News4Jax

Music and mental health come together in Stronger Than Stigma’s fourth Concert + Conversation. The event is a fundraiser for the advocacy organization, but also a rare fusion of entertainment and candid explorations of mental health challenges. Staged at Blue Jay Listening Room in Jacksonville Beach, the event features live music by Rambler Kane and Three Leg Cat, followed by a moderated panel discussion on the musicians’ own experiences, and the interplay between artistry and psychological well-being. Tickets for the “concert-meets-couch” event benefit the local organization.

Guests:

• Gabrielle Magid, founder and CEO of Stronger Than Stigma
• Rambler Kane, singer/songwriter

As the federal government positions artificial intelligence as a national priority while ramping up AI data centers' construction, local governments are increasingly pushing back. Last week, Florida passed legislation regulating data centers, allowing local communities to pause or deny the construction of new ones. The new law signifies an uncommon break between Florida and the priorities of President Trump, who signed an executive order in July 2025 calling for an accelerated buildout of AI infrastructure while easing federal regulations. We discuss how local communities are responding to AI infrastructure, what to expect from Florida’s special session to pass a budget and why Jacksonville is being named the best city for first-time homebuyers, even as access to affordable housing remains a major issue.

Guest: Chris Hand, local government expert, attorney and co-author with the late Sen. Bob Graham of America, the Owner's Manual

Individuals and couples trying to conceive face a slew of challenges, from the sheer cost of in vitro fertilization to the physical and emotional toll of hormone treatments and the anxiety of repeated treatments and uncertain outcomes. But living through the experience has birthed a new kind of process-midwife known as an infertility doula. We meet a local practitioner who says sharing the knowledge she gleaned in her own fertility experience gives clients comfort and confidence in what can be both a life-changing and a life-giving process.

Guests:

• Alexandra Hamrick, founder, The Infertility Doula 
• Marisa Coloñ, full-spectrum doula, student midwife

From the streets of Downtown Jacksonville to the waters of the St. Johns River, the toughest triathletes brace for this weekend's competition. We meet a competitor, a coach and the organizer of the inaugural Jacksonville Ironman. The ultimate endurance race features a 2.4-mile river swim, a 112-mile bike loop that runs from the city center to the Beaches, and 26.2-mile run through Downtown. Among those competing in the contest is first-time Ironman contender and Jacksonville City Council member Raul Arias. The swim, which runs from Metro Park to just west of the Cummer Museum, is viewable by spectators along the Northbank Riverwalk. The running course wends through Lavilla and Riverside before ending in Riverfront Park. The race is expected to affect traffic in both Duval and St. Johns counties, but the only road that will be closed entirely is the Nocatee Parkway Flyover between 8 a.m. and 6 p.m.

Guests:  

• Skye Johnson, 5x Ironman participant, coach and owner of Tri with Skye
• Emily Rogers, first time Ironman participant
• Ryan Lobato, communications manager, The IRONMAN Group

A recent NBC News poll found that only 38% of Generation Z is looking forward to the future. Nearly half said if they had a choice, they’d travel into the past — a time before social media, cellphones and the sense that both political and planetary environments are increasingly uninhabitable. This vicarious nostalgia for a time they never experienced, known as anemoia, has become common among those under 30, as they face perilous economic and increasingly challenging social realities. We talk about how a generation that has earned the nickname “the anxious generation” sets a path when every step is uncertain.

Guests:

• Taylor White, junior, Fleming Island High School
• Jalicia Lewis, community outreach and engagement lead, Jacksonville Climate Coalition
• Gabriel James, founder of Pathway America charter at Flagler College

Two weeks ago we told you about Florida’s emergency dentistry crisis. On Wednesday, we preview a two-day event designed to help as many as 1,800 locals in need of free dental care. Sponsored by the Florida Dental Association Foundation, the 11th Florida Mission of Mercy event will be Friday and Saturday at the Prime Osborn Convention Center, along with a special Veterans’ First initiative on Thursday. (Veterans can pre-register by visiting www.flamom.org and clicking the red “Veterans’ Dental Event” button.) The event offers free cleanings, fillings, tooth extractions, pediatric dentistry and root canals. The event is ticketed: After checking in on-site, patients are given a specific appointment time and asked to return for care. Appointments are given on a first-come, first-served basis, so early arrival is encouraged. Doors open at 7 a.m. Friday and Saturday.

Guest: Dr. Tom Brown, dentist and co-chair of the 2026 Florida Mission of Mercy

When President Abraham Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation on Jan. 1, 1863, it applied to Florida as well as nine other states that seceded from the Union. The policy was known to those living in Union-controlled areas, including St. Augustine and Jacksonville. But for parts of the state still governed by the Confederacy, the formal proclamation wasn’t announced until more than two years later, on May 20, 1865. And it would be another month before word reached the final formally enslaved areas of the nation in Texas — a day now celebrated as the federal holiday of Juneteenth. A local celebration of Emancipation Day was started in 1913 by humanitarian and philanthropist Eartha M.M. White and revived in 2021 by Jacksonville City Council member and Clara White Mission CEO Ju’Coby Pittman. This year’s event will be from 5-9 p.m. Sunday at Lift Ev’ry Voice and Sing Park, and features live performances by STR8UP Band, Mal Jones, DJ Cook, Alisha Merine and Kiyurah Davis, as well as presentations by local historians, food vendors and a celebratory setting.

Guests:

• Carla Mechele Jones, Vibrant Places Collective facilitator
• Yollie Copeland, founder and tour guide, Explore Jax Core

Two months out from the official start of budget season, planning for the mayor’s proposal is well underway, along with hints of potential sticking points. Some members of the Jacksonville City Council are (again) gearing up to fight city health initiatives, and state restrictions on DEI spending threaten support of a range of projects, including funding for the Black, Hispanic and Asian chambers of commerce. In our monthly Ask the Mayor segment, we ask Mayor Donna Deegan about her spending priorities, the multiple ongoing investigations into JEA and a backlog on affordable housing spending. Deegan also answers your calls and questions.

Guest: Jacksonville Mayor Donna Deegan

More comfortable seats and improved acoustics are two of the biggest changes promised in a summertime overhaul of Jacoby Symphony Hall. The orchestra’s home is slated for a makeover beginning June 8, with completion set to conclude ahead of the 2026/27 season in September. The project will also include new carpeting and an updated speaker system for non-classical programming like the Pops Series and Symphonic Night at the Movies performances. We talk to the Symphony’s chief executive about how the project is being funded and how the changes will affect guests and performers alike.

Guest: Steven B. Libman, president and CEO of the Jacksonville Symphony

An acclaimed Americana performer who’s graced stages from Florida to his home state of Illinois for decades celebrates the release of his debut studio album this month. A mix of country, blues, folk and rock 'n’ roll, Gathering Turquoise was recorded at Retrophonics Recording Studio in St. Augustine and was produced in part by Cara Murphy, owner of Blue Jay Listening Room in Jacksonville Beach. Fittingly, that’s also where Patrick Hagerman’s album release show will be held May 23. With a sound that’s been compared to Guy Clark and John Prine, Hagerman is known for both emotionally evocative and sagely comic lyrics, as in his songs Hell on Purpose and Walmart Melatonin. In a recent social media post, Hagerman said, “After 30 years of songs, miles, late nights, heartbreak, hope, new love and chasing something real … it’s finally here.”

Guest: Patrick Hagerman, singer-songwriter

Known as “the King of Ragtime Guitar,” Arthur “Blind” Blake claimed Jacksonville as home, but his blues songs traced a path across the country, from West Coast Blues to Georgia Bound. By the time of his death at age 38, he’d recorded an estimated 80 tracks for Paramount Records, starting in 1926. On the 100th anniversary of that musical milestone, his legacy continues as one of the most revered and distinctive guitarists of the era. Blake was known for a rhythmic guitar style defined by a “thumb roll” striking out bass notes while he picked alternate, complicated melodies with his index and middle fingers. His first solo record, Early Morning Blues, planted the flag for what would become known as Piedmont blues, with an uptempo guitar sound that mimicked a piano. We discuss how his local influence is remembered and listen to some of the songs Blake wrote about Jacksonville with two local historians.

Guests:

• Adonnica Toler, museum director, Eartha M. M. White Historical Museum and Gardens
• Tim Gilmore, author, educator and historian at JaxPsychoGeo

Fighting misinformation online takes if not a village, then at least a small digital army. That’s the idea behind Climate Truth Tellers, an initiative of the Sierra Club that works to combat deceptive, alarmist or simply mistaken claims about climate change on social media. The strategy aims to both flood the zone with helpful, fact-based posts and to offer counter programming to the often dystopian drumbeat of online exchanges. We talk to the program’s regional manager about tactics to take on the trolls, and her recent appearance on the Climate Connections shortcast.

Guest: Jennifer McCharen, regional digital manager, Sierra Club

An upcoming production by Bold City Opera offers a chance to both reminisce about past performances and fund future ones. The nonprofit resident chamber opera company holds its inaugural fundraiser cabaret, showcasing signature performances from its first three years of immersive opera experiences. Founded in late 2022 by locally based soprano Christine Alfano and conductor Brandon Smith, BCO has hosted free outreach performances and is known for pushing traditional operatic boundaries. Encores and Evolution includes a two-act concert, as well as popular arias, duets and ensemble pieces featuring a mix of regional and local performers. The cabaret show begins at 7 p.m. May 16 in Taliaferro Hall at St. John’s Cathedral in Downtown Jacksonville.

Guests:

• Brandon Smith, Bold City Opera executive artistic director, co-founder and pianist
• Christine Alfano, co-founder of Bold City Opera and featured cabaret vocalist

Each Friday, our media roundtable dives into the biggest stories of the week. Among our topics this week:

• An influential group of business executives asks the City Council to lay off on its JEA investigation — and the council rejects the request.
• The surprising results of a community poll show support for a vision of the Skyway that doesn’t involve mass transit.
• A local woman plans to file suit over her court-ordered C-section. 
• The city’s DOGE committee finds no evidence of fraud or conflicts of interest after a $40,000, six-month probe.

Guests:

• David Bauerlein, metro reporter at the Florida Times-Union
• Riley Phillips, reporter at First Coast News
• Jack Webb, attorney and former Jacksonville City Council president

For nearly 50 years, a nonprofit law firm has provided free civil legal aid to North and Central Florida residents, focusing specifically on those who are low-income, disabled, elderly or military service veterans. The group provides services in 17 counties ranging from housing and family law to pursuing disability and VA payments. But the group’s mission hinges on community support. An upcoming fundraiser featuring live music and cocktails aims to help the group raise $30,000 to fund its services. The 3rd Annual Justice Jam will take place at 6 p.m. May 14 at Brick and Beam in Springfield.

Guests:

• LaTonya Lipscomb Smith, heirs property project manager, Three Rivers Legal Services Inc.
• Kevin Rabin, litigation director, Three Rivers Legal Services Inc.

A phrase that once signaled housing as a basic Maslow need has taken on a more sinister cast: The rent eats first. For an increasing number of households on the First Coast, the choice between groceries and soaring housing costs is all too real. A new book explores what happens when housing is viewed as an investment asset rather than a social necessity. An outgrowth of the University of North Florida’s Jax Rental Housing Project, the book drills down on how the local market became dominated by large institutional investors, private equity firms and corporate landlords, some holding thousands of units and creating a social crisis that goes beyond just financial concerns. We talk to the authors about how they built the research project and what they hope their work will accomplish.

Guests: 

• David Jaffee, professor of sociology at the University of North Florida, director of the UNF Jax Rental Housing Project
• Katie Renzi, project manager, Jax Rental Housing Project

A journey of a thousand miles begins … in Jacksonville. Later this month, veterans embark on an adaptive cycling ride in honor of the nation’s 250th birthday. Some 80 athletes begin a two-week journey to the 9/11 memorial in New York City, with patriotic pit stops along the way, including Gettysburg, the Liberty Bell, Arlington National Cemetery and the White House. The peloton will be divided into four groups of 20 for the relay ride, some on traditional bikes, others using hand cycles or recumbent bikes. We talk to the ride’s sponsor, Wounded Warrior Project, as well as a paralympic triathlete and participant, about the value of physical activity and group endeavors when it comes to overcoming service-related trauma.

Guests:

• Meghan Wagner, director of physical health and wellness, Wounded Warrior Project
• Kelly Elmlinger, Army veteran and paralympic triathlete

After participating in a national roundtable discussion on students with dyslexia hosted by doctor and U.S. Sen. Bill Cassidy, R-Louisiana, Jacksonville pediatrician and advocate Dr. Chanley Dudley joins us to discuss how the city is meeting the challenge of educating children equally and appropriately. Dudley also serves on the board for the city’s primary school for dyslexic kids, the DePaul School of Northeast Florida, which is undergoing a major expansion. We ask her about goals for the new campus and the launch of the Florida Dyslexia Literacy Center.

Guest:

• Dr. Chanley Dudley, parent, pediatrician and board chair at the DePaul School of Northeast Florida & Florida Dyslexia Literacy Center
• Amber Oliveira, head of school, DePaul School of Northeast Florida

Three years after an investigation by the Florida Trib led the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office to fire its longtime jail medical provider, the company’s quality of care is still a matter of concern. In a new report, award-winning investigative reporter Nichole Manna digs into the 2023 death of Brian Tracey, which occurred on the day he was scheduled to be released from the St. Johns County jail, as his girlfriend waited for him outside. As part of a joint report with ProPublica, the story includes the perspective of four experts, including former jail commanders and physicians, who determined Tracey should have been hospitalized after symptoms that included fainting and difficulty breathing. We discuss the state of contracted, for-profit medical care in jails, and what it means for people who may arrive there in marginal health.

Guest: Nichole Manna, investigative reporter at the Florida Trib

If all you know about bonsai trees is what you learned from Mr. Miyagi, there is much to learn, grasshopper. We talk to a bonsai expert and a master gardener ahead of Riverside Avondale Preservation's annual home garden tour. We also get expert advice about how to manage your existing plants during the ongoing drought and related water restrictions. RAP's 6th Annual Garden Tour is a major community fundraiser, offering a peek into some of the region’s most painstakingly landscaped places, from the “Bromelia Boutique” on Oak Street to the chemical-free, Florida-friendly environs of “Nature’s Friend” on Pine Street. The event runs from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday and has become a pre-Mother’s Day tradition for many.

Guests:

• Stephanie Means, Florida-Friendly Landscaping Program coordinator at the University of Florida’s Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences
• Mike Groeschel, owner, SkyDog Family Bonsai

Florida State College at Jacksonville’s literary magazine, The Experience, will host a poetry night Wednesday at Happy Medium Books Café to celebrate the release of Vol 58: Tales of a Scarred Land! The book showcases some of the work in the school’s 39th Art and Design Student Show and runs the gamut from photography to poetry, short stories and experimental work. The event includes a free copy of the compendium, along with student performances. Organizers encourage participants to indulge their creative side by wearing “fantasy-like” attire to complement the wide-ranging work of FSCJ students.

Guests:

• Jenn Chase, humanities and English professor, Florida State College at Jacksonville
• Ambar Quiroga, student art director, Tales of a Scarred Land vol. 58

A 10-day festival across Amelia Island and Nassau County celebrates the region’s unique ecosystem with music, environmental displays, live animal exhibits, a kids market and a sand sculpture contest to help the community appreciate and learn how to better protect the area’s natural spaces. Scheduled to coincide with the annual opening of the beaches celebration, the 17th annual Wild Amelia Nature Eco/Expo Festival will be held from May 8–17 at Main Beach Park. The event is also a tribute to local environmentalists Jodi and Ray Hetchka, founders of the festival, owners of Kayak Amelia and longtime champions of the natural world.

Guest: Lynda Bell, executive director, Keep Nassau Beautiful

Wildfires and burn bans are very much in the news now, as North Florida and South Georgia face “exceptional” droughts and a rainfall deficit of as much as 2 feet this year alone — the most extreme in 15 years. But while the state grapples with the effects of the current crisis, Florida's longer term challenges are often overlooked. The water scarcity crisis is not just a function of a warming planet or periodic drought. It’s driven by rapid population growth, overdevelopment and rising demands on the Floridan Aquifer, the region’s principal source of freshwater. We get the lay of the land from the statewide expert who leads the University of Florida’s H2OSAV (Water Savings, Analytics, and Verification) extension program, designed to measurably reduce water use across the state.

Guest: Dr. Nick Taylor, state specialized extension agent, University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences and Center for Land Use Efficiency

A new cookbook celebrates “the pepper of St. Augustine,” framed by the Minorcan cuisine that holds the fiery capsicum dear. Illustrated by visual artist Gayle Prevatt, the “Datil Taste Good” cookbook is itself peppered with familiar local names of the original Minorcan immigrants (Pacetti, Masters, Manucy) and features no fewer than five recipes for Minorcan clam chowder and two kinds of “Bottled Hell” datil sauce. We discuss how the pepper became synonymous with St. Augustine, its mysterious origin story and why it remains largely confined to its Northeast Florida home turf.

Guests:

• Magen Altice, executive director, St. Augustine Historical Society
• Nicole Diehm, head librarian and curator, St. Augustine Historical Society

For more than 30 years The National Association of Letter Carriers has hosted an annual food drive collecting nearly 2 billion pounds of goods for food banks across the United States. The Stamp Out Hunger campaign is the largest food drive in the nation, with postal workers in 10,000 cities participating. We talk to the branch leader of the local letter carriers union about the event and why the need becomes especially keen as school winds down for the summer. Residents who wish to donate can leave nonperishable food items in a bag by their mailbox on Saturday.

Guest: Jim Thigpenn, president, North Florida Letter Carriers, Branch 53